return • theo raeken [2]

fourteen. riders on the storm

Luna

BODIES OF THE GHOST Riders littered the floor of the hospital.  Not as many as the amount I had previously disengaged, but enough.  The first couple of waves of Ghost Rider's had kept us preoccupied after we left Liam in the elevator, but we were able to get more of a break as we kept running through the hospital.  I kept myself from turning into the Beast, but was still doing pretty well without the extra power.  There was still a few times when Theo had to get a Rider off of me; however, there was just as many times that I had to do the same for him.  Even though we were preoccupied with fighting the Riders, it didn't keep us from bickering.

"I'm just saying you probably could've helped Liam a lot more if you would've just went with him!" Theo yells as he tackles a Ghost Rider into a wall, digging his claws into the thing's stomach.

I groan at his statement and throw a Ghost Rider across the hall.  We both halt to look at each other for a moment.

"Are we really back to this?  What could I have possibly helped Liam with?  Protect him from Ghost Riders?"  I claw at a Riders neck as I say, "Oh, wait.  That's what I'm doing!  Besides I couldn't let you be taken, too."

"Oh, yeah?  Why not?  You seemed pretty content with the idea of me going back into the ground.  Why should you forgetting about me be any different?"

I hear Theo snap one of the Rider's neck from behind me.  My body swiftly turns around to stare at Theo who's huffing for breath.  My arms lift then fall with a smack against my legs.

"Because maybe I don't want to forget about you.  Changing into the Beast is changing who I am, whether I like it or not, and you might be the only person who will understand when the darkness takes over me.  I can feel it, seeping into who I am, and I hate the way—I hate it."

"You only want me because you don't want to be alone.  Because I'm the evil one so I'll understand, right?"  Theo replies and I can hear the hurt in his voice as he struggles with a Ghost Rider.

"No!  That's not—That's not what I meant."

I rip the Ghost Rider off of Theo and slam it into the wall.  My claws dig into the Rider's neck, blood spews over my face as I slash my claws through, and I turn to Theo when it falls to the floor.

"For the past six months, I've tried everything to get over you.  To convince myself that I didn't want you.  But I've never had any control over myself when it comes to you.  Hell, I even tried to date Scott in order to get over you, and it didn't work.  Theo, I—"

Theo is holding a Ghost Rider in a chokehold, but he stills to stare at me.  The Ghost Rider is pulling at Theo's arm as Theo asks incredulously, "You dated Scott?"

I grab the tip of a Ghost Rider's whip as it tries to hit me and raise my eyebrows in Theo's direction.

"I'm trying to tell you I still have feelings for you and you're worried about me previously dating Scott?  Are you fucking serious?"

The Ghost Rider pulls me into a match of tug of war with his whip.  My feet slide against the tiled, bloodcaked floor as I try to find stability.  Theo grunts as he steps over in front of me to help pull the Rider towards us.  I'm able to get some friction between my feet and the floor, and I start to pull with Theo.  With the both of us pulling, the Ghost Rider starts to slide forward and refuses to let go of its whip.  Once it is only a couple of feet away from us, we let go and attack.  Theo goes for its head while I go for its legs.  The Ghost Rider is knocked unconscious as soon as its head hits the ground, but for extra measure Theo stomps on its head.

Theo turns and steps closer to me with a confused expression written over his face.

"You wouldn't let me tell you I love you, but now you're saying that you have feelings for me?  What about not being able to forgive me for what I did to y—"